The Delhi High Court on Monday remarked that both Trinamool Congress leader Mahua Moitra and her ex-partner Jai Anant Dehadrai, a Supreme Court lawyer, brought down the public discourse over their allegations against each other to a "fairly low" level.
A bench led by Justice Prateek Jalan was hearing a defamation case filed by Jai Anant Dehadrai against Mahua Moitra, saying that after he levelled the allegations against her that she received cash and gifts from a businessman to ask questions in Lok Sabha, she made "false, abusive, and defamatory statements" about him.
Dehadrai's plea said Moitra portrayed him as a "person who has become bitter due to a failed personal relationship and is now filing false complaints to take revenge".
He is seeking an interim injunction to stop the expelled Lok Sabha MP from making "defamatory" statements against him and demanding Rs 2 crore as damages.
The court warned Mahua Moitra's counsel, saying she has to be careful and it will have to impose an injunction on her if she made objectively false statements.
However, the court added that Mahua Moitra has the right to defend herself in public if the allegations against her are made in the public domain.
The court also warned Dehadrai’s counsel that if he is a plaintiff in a defamation case before the court, it will balance the equities while granting any injunction. It said it will have to give room to Moitra to defend herself if he continues making allegations against her in the public domain despite filing the case.
The court questioned why Mahua Moitra cannot state that Jai Anant Dehadrai made the allegations against her due to their relationship and added, "That is her perception."
Whether your allegations are true or untrue, that will have its own consequences. But when you’ve made those allegations, she’s entitled to give her side on it," it added.
The court adjourned the hearing and allowed written statements to be filed on behalf of Mahua Moitra. It noted that the suspended MP intends to take the defence of justification and fair comment regarding some or all allegations claimed as defamatory by Dehadrai.
